What is the "Burst Rate" on a digital camera?
Burst Rate is the number of images that a digital camera can record in succession. This becomes important when trying to record fast action or a series of movements that occur rapidly.
What are CCD and DPS?
CCD stands for "charge-coupled device". It is a type of photosensor and is like the digital camera's (or camcorder) eye which collects the light and converts it into a digital image. DPS on the other hand is the digital equivalent of camera film.
What is optical versus digital zoom?
If you want true zoom function on your digital camera, look for optical zoom. Digital zoom merely crops and digitally enlarges the area in the center of the frame. This can significantly reduce image quality.
What are Pixels?
Pixels are the pieces of information about an image. The color for instance. When hundreds, thousands, or millions of these tiny points of graphic information are arranged an image is formed. The more pixels present the more information is available to produce a high quality image. If a digital camera is noted to be 1.3 megapixel it is an expression of how much information it can produce. The CCD sensor also has a pixel rating which is important in determining the potential photo quality the camera is capable of producing. In addition, the device used to display pictures (a computer monitor for instance) will determine the "resolution"; how many pixels it is capable of displaying. This is often expressed in dpi or dots per inch.
How do I determine how many megapixels I need?
More megapixels generally produce better pictures. However, buying a digital camera with more megapixels than you need costs money. It is wiser to determine what type of prints you will want. If you stick with standard 4x6 prints, a camera with 3.0 megapixels will do, if you plan on printing any 8x10 photos you should get 5.0. At the top end, a 8.0 megapixels will produce good 12x16 prints. Keep in mind that megapixels will dictate your storage capabilities. More megapixels create a need for more storage capacity. A 3.0 megapixel camera can store about 10 pictures on a standard 16MB memory card while an 8.0 megapixel camera will store only 2. Other factors influence the quality of the images you will be viewing, such as the resolution of the computer screen, the quality of the printer, and the CCD sensor array.
What is the best way to store pictures from my digital camera?
The easiest way is to store them on your computer hard drive. However, as we all know a hard drive can fail so back up on either CD, DVD, or another storage device is recommended.
What are memory cards?
A digital camera stores images on some type of removable device, such as a memory card, from which they can be downloaded to a computer and shared online or printed. The images are then deleted from the memory card and it is reused. Memory cards and memory sticks vary in size and storage capacity as well as cost. There are numerous products on the market but the following are some of the most common:
SmartMedia cards are thin and flexible but can be easily damaged. They have a reasonable capacity but have a 64MB capacity which makes them a poor choice for a high-resolution digital camera. CompactFlash cards have a much higher storage capacity and are good for high resolution cameras. Memory Sticks are another option and generally possess more memory capacity than Smart Media. MultiMedia Cards, as the name implies, can interface with a number of digital devices; from cameras to cell phones that have a connection.
What is a DSLR camera?
DSLR stands for digital single lens reflex camera as these cameras use a single lens and reflex mirror to capture images. A DSLR model is capable of accomodating a variety of lenses; wide-angle, telephoto, and macro lenses (for close up photography). Because of this they offer users more flexibility in the type of photographs they can capture. In addition, an SLR model allows users to see images through the viewfinder just as the lens sees them. The images produced by an SLR digital camera also tends to be higher than that of compact and ultra compact models. These cameras on the other hand tend to be heavier, more complex, and higher priced.
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